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Looking to flesh out its line of managed security services products, VeriSign Inc. has snapped up network security researcher iDefense Inc. The US$40 million cash acquisition was completed Wednesday, according to VeriSign.

Based in Reston, Virginia, iDefense provides early warning assessment of Internet security threats to a fairly select group of government and very large enterprise clients, said Chris Babel, vice president of Managed Security Services at VeriSign.

By acquiring the company, VeriSign hopes to be able to market the iDefense research products to a wider audience, while at the same time using data from VeriSign's security monitoring operations to bolster the iDefense research, he said.

The 45-person research company will retain the iDefense name, but will operate as a division within Babel's group, he said. VeriSign, based in Mountain View, California, has no plans to move the iDefense team from their present location, he said.

Last year, VeriSign strengthened its position in this market by spending $135 million to acquire Guardent, a security services provider in Waltham, Massachussetts. That acquisition was completed in February 2004.